Veteran Ugandan musician Mesach Semakula has opened up about the challenges he faced while securing Kampala Kingdom as the venue for his highly anticipated ‘50 Years of Greatness’ concert.
Semakula revealed that securing the venue was not an easy process, explaining that the owners initially resisted hosting his concert despite him having already made the required payment.
According to the singer, he had to repeatedly seek the intervention of businessman Godfrey Kirumira, whom he called more than eight times in an effort to convince the venue owners to reconsider their decision.
“I called Mzee Godfrey Kirumira more than eight times trying to secure this venue for my concert because the Indians had refused. I would call him as early as 7 am, asking him to talk to them,” Semakula revealed.
He further disclosed that the situation escalated when the venue owner instructed employees to refund his payment and advised him to find another location for the concert.
“At one point, the owner instructed his workers to refund my payment and told me to look for another venue,” he added.
Semakula also recalled how he restrained himself from confronting one of the managers who had been sent to communicate the decision, noting that although he felt frustrated, he chose to handle the matter differently.
“I know how to fight, but this is not the age to fight. I looked at him and remembered the days when I was still young. I imagined I could take him on, but I couldn’t,” he said.
The singer credited Kirumira’s intervention for eventually resolving the dispute, saying the businessman continued engaging the venue owners until they agreed to allow the concert to take place.
“I had to call Mzee Kirumira again, and he talked to them until they allowed me to hold my concert here,” he explained.